Excellent food and cocktails! Service is great as well and the atmosphere is very nice. Me and my fiancé enjoy their Parmesan dinner specialties and the espresso martinis! Highly recommend! 5 stars definitely! read more

I've been here a couple times before but this last time was amazing and I just have to write a review! Two of my friends were in town or from up north, and I had to show them Barbosso because they always tell us Florida can never do Italian food. Well, I proved them wrong with telling them to get the veal Parmesan, and the best part was when our server Dani came over and told them to get the veal Parmesan, she also told them to just get the veal saltimbocca as well as it was one of her favorites (which they did.) they were absolutely astounded by the food, and told me that there is only one place now in Florida, that can do Italian food. As for the service, I will only ever request Dani from now on she was on point all night, even though she was so busy at times and we watched one table be really mean to her right next to us, she always came to us with a smile and a joke and told my friend Yankees will always be better than Boston it was hysterical! We can't wait to come back again Thank you so much Cafe Barbosso! read more

Great neighborhood restaurant. Super interesting ambiance with the artist painting live and the decor of their work. I think it's a brilliant concept. I do recommend going here if you are looking for an authentic NY Italian restaurant. The owner is from Long Island and has tried to bring the food here into a cool vibe. So why not 5 stars you say? Some of the food is very good - the chicken parm for example. But some is lacking that punch - the meatballs and regular red sauce. The Sunday sauce is tasty - so my suggestion is to upgrade to the Sunday. I appreciate everyone has different tastes and preferences and that is why I suggest you go try it for yourself. read more

Wonderful food and wait staff. Staff very knowledgeable. Music is delightful and there is an artist of the night. Fun to watch!

Food is very good. The art scene is over the top too much. I had their peasant chicken over pasta which is special. Sauce is extremely savory and different. Pasta is perfectly cooked. read more

FABULOUS! Best authentic HOME MADE EVERYTHING!! Food is phenomenal and service is fantastic! Joe, the owner, is a fantastic chef from NY , little Italy, AND a U.S. Maine Veteran! read more

Best Carbonara I've ever had and I love Carbonara. Good service. Nice place to go any day!

EVERYTHING was incredibly good!! Our server, Mark is EXACTLY the kind of employee every business would be lucky to have! My veal parm was exceptional. MOLTO BENE!!! read more

Excellent food and service. We were unable to get a table so we sat at the bar and the bar tender was super friendly and gave great suggestions can't wait to go again. read more

Cafe Barbosso is the total package! It is delicious and a fantastic experience. We have enjoyed everything we have ever eaten or drank there. Artists are there every evening painting live in the dining room. The walls are filled with unique and ever changing art! read more

Average Pizza for Take out . far better options for you in Sarasota within a few miles. I was told 25-30 minutes for ready, I waited 20 .. not extremely HOT at pick up . It was a bit bland, like the cheese wasn't that delicious,maybe because it was greasy. read more

Just a well run, very fun place. Food, service and atmosphere are excellent. Peasant Chicken is amazing.

Fun vibes, great service and scrumptious food! Live music several evenings a week. I bring visitors to this gem. Always a great time.

Very disappointed last night arriving on time for a 7:15 reservation with 4 friends to introduce them to this restaurant where we have previously dined about 6 times. We were finally seated at 7:35 and placed our dinner order about ten minutes later. The appetizers arrived in a timely manner but we did not receive our entree until after 9 PM. By that time we were famished. To top the poor experience off my Seafood Fra Diavalo was overflowing with sauce and the pasta was stuck together in lumps. My guests remarked that their entrees were just so-so. I regret to say that this is likely my last visit to a restaurant that had pleased me in the past. read more

The food and drinks were very good. I don't love the bar seating, but we didn't have a reservation, so that was the only thing available.

Picked up their 29.95 deal. You get an extra large cheese pizza, large salad for 4 , bread and butter and spaghetti and 4 meatballs. What a deal and everything was delicious!!! read more

Last night my parents and I did chef Joe's chefs tasting and to put it in one word I would say it was mind-blowing. Chef Joe told us he has experience in over 40 cuisines and it really showed in his food last night. He went from a starter spinach and ricotta pizza to shrimp and wild boar dumplings to a delicious family tiramisu and his own Ferrero Roche dessert he created himself (8 courses in all). Every course was somehow more impressive than the last and all equally delicious. We did the wine pairing as well with each course, which I would also say is very worth doing if you are going to do the experience. Overall, everyone needs to try out chef Joe's tasting table, you'll leave full, impressed, and happy! Not to mention Joe takes time between each course to chat with you which is also a treat itself! read more

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4th time at Cafe Barbosso. Besides a great food experience at a restaurant, consistency is the key for me. 4th experience is the same as my previous reviews. Consistently delicious Italian food. Great job 'sinner'! read more

Great Italian food! Large portions- will eat at least another meal from the servings. Trendy art decor inside. Outdoor seating with bocco ball. read more

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I went here last night with family. The ambiance was very cozy and romantic. The food was really good . The wine was also great. I would go again read more

I had the veal Marsala which was very good and quite generous. There was a drink happy hour until 6pm. For a Friday evening the service was good & staff was friendly. We sat in the side covered patio which it was a nice evening so it was pleasant. Once the music outdoors got started then it was hard to hear any conversation around the table. read more

Excellent dinner at Cafe Barbossa as always. The shrimp marinara far exceeded expectations. We always have the best service but tonight's was exceptional! Mark (w/glasses in case there is another) was absolutely amazing! Friendly, knowledgeable, kind, etc! You all have a winner with this server! I don't always write reviews but tonight it was worth it. read more

Last night my husband and I and close friends had the pleasure of dining at the chefs table with Chef Joe. We dined on foie gras, beef tenderloin, sea scallops, crab meat, hand made dumplings and a trio of desserts that were out of this world. And not to mention the off the menu Indian lamb inspired flat bread pizza. This was an outstanding array of food and detail to cooking. It was a true pleasure to experience flavors like that. I will be back and am looking forward to the new surprises he will have to offer! read more

Passing thru from Miami to Tampa. Liked the pix of the art on Yelp, so we stopped in for a quick bite. Easy to say we were beyond pleased with this descion. Not only did we love our dinner, we also thoroughly enjoyed Katrina & debi (the bartenders). They were working their tails off and making some kicka$$ cocktails. The old fashion had the most deliciously muddled baddabing cherries & the fig/mandarin flatbread was like brunch for dinner. Def worth checking this place out ... for the food and sweet art decor. Also- take a peek at the tiles in the bathroom above the sinks! read more

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Great food and great bar! Chef Joe and his staff are always ready to serve your needs and even special requests. The artists are there for your entertainment and enjoyment of their talents. read more

Loved the big band entertainment outside! Our 2 appetizers (garlicky shrimp and the Bruschetta) were both delicious. Can't wait to return to order a whole meal! read more

Barbosa is in the corner section of a strip mall approximately 3 miles from my home in Palmer Ranch. Due to the very limited seating at the bar area ,it took a couple of to attempts. I had the veal marsala and it was very good . I had heard from my neighbors about the Chef's Table . I had booked a seat for myself a little over a month in advance For my birthday. I had in my mind it was on the Saturday my daughter came into town that Friday morning I told her before she arrived I had dinner plans for Saturday so she was making plans to go out with my son. I work at the hospital until 5 o'clock so I can't imagine why I would've scheduled it for that Friday to be there at 6 o'clock. Apparently I had and found that out when I arrived on Saturday night dressed to impress at 6 PM. I was very embarrassed needless to say and when the chef told me I was supposed of been there Friday night they had tried to call me several times I looked at my phone and I actually did have one call with the message asking where I was it 630 Friday night. I lost my $90 deposit which is understandable, but When I received my credit card statement and found they had charged me $115 I was astounded. I paid $115 for the deposit plus the tip for a meal that I never had. Whatever you do Love you too please mark it on your calendar with an alarm not to miss your dinner reservation. This is Sarasota not New York City I'm sure the food would've been delicious but I will not be patronizing this establishment again. read more

The food was delicious!!! Being from N.Y. I get picky with Italian food. The eggplant was to die for. The meatballs were great and the pizza was off the charts. To top it off I took some cannoli's home which is one of the true tests and I thought I was in Brooklyn! A must stop for people visiting and my new go to for Italian. They have a good Happy Hour with food 4-6pm and outside dining. Joe, the owner, who is also a chef hit a grand slam home run with this business. Kudos to your staff also... read more

Kind, nice quick hostess. Atmosphere very casual comfortable old New York. Creative paintings on the wall with a painter's studio in the center of the room. And then our waiter Evan, efficient informative, trustworthy, a total Delight. We will be back see you soon..... absolutely awesome food we must not forget that. Finally an old world Italian restaurant Sarasota very lucky. Definitely for us a five star. read more

Cafe Barbosso - A very New York Restaurant... - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

A little pricey. Food is generally good but service not so great. If you do want decent food still a consideration. read more

We really like it here. Great New York vibe, good food, attentive service, not many tourists, all good. Our only menu issue was with the escargot. Cooked perfectly, But way too lemony tonight. Sunday is a good night to come. Recommended! Tell them Dr. Bob sent you! read more

Cafe Barbosso - Italian Near Me - Sarasota, Florida

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I had the worst experience ever in a Sarasota establishment tonight. Owner of Cafe BarBosso (Joe) told me to "get out of the way" as I tried to make my way from the bar to my table! I was so flabbergasted I couldn't even respond. Really wanted to slap him up one side of his big bald head and then the other. Such arrogance! He is not a nice man. He was rude and arrogant. He went behind the chef's table and when I asked to speak with him he said... "don't break my balls...I have knives back here", as he twirled a big knife in his hand! What restaurant owner would say those things? I took to the internet as this was the safest way to expel my anger. read more

Fantastic food, fantastic service, fantastic fun! We ordered from the regular menu the first night. Which was a great experience. The wonderful waitstaff told us about the Chef's choice experience. We did that the next night. We thought $90/pp was expensive but afterwards we marveled at have such exquisite food and a great experience at such a cheap price. Well worth it! read more

Delicious food and amazing service. Talented artists working on their paintings while you eat create a very special atmosphere. Make a reservation in advance since this is extremely popular restaurant. Highly recommended! read more

We have been coming here for 3 years and liked it but last time we were there my husband ordered his regular Eggplant which he loves but this time it came out like a pancake and had hardly any eggplant in it!! I asked the waitress what happened to the regular tower of crepe like eggplant, new recipe ? She said no that's it Wrong it was totally different and VERY disappointing . So we had dessert and the waitress brings us out ice cold coffee, how do you serve a table cold coffee and not notice. Well we are done, don't like being lied to so never coming back. read more

Tonight could not have been more perfect. We chose Cafe BarBosso to celebrate the 100th birthday for our mother. The food was amazing and the atmosphere was fun and perfect for our fabulous 100 year old. Eric our server and Chef Joe DiMagio JR could not have been more gracious. We plan to return again soon and highly recommend Cafe BarBosso for the amazing food and atmosphere. If I could give it 10 stars I would! read more

Loved all of our food and cocktails! Can't remember what we had, but it's irrelevant everything is delicious!

Amazing!!! The service was a step above anything we've seen in a longtime. We had heard this place had great reviews but our experience was even above that!! The GM Katie was exeptional and very accommodating, we showed up with no reservation and she was able to get us a table in a very reasonable amount of time. Thank you Katie. Our server Eric was incredible. Every dish he recommended lived up to the hype, thank you Eric. We are going to try and fill thE chefs table with 12 of our friends. FYI ........NO CORK FEES!!!!! read more

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My wife Jenny and I had a blast! The music! The painters painting! Amazing! Pizza was so wonderful! Stop by this hot diggity place if you're ever in the area read more

Very good Italian restaurant on Clark near the highway. The tuna puttanesca was excellent and was one of the specials today. Our fellow diners liked their pizza and the rigatoni Bolognese. They have several seafood dishes and some interesting sounding appetizers as well. Dinners include fresh baked bread with herbed dipping oil. Good wine selection. Very large and diverse art selection is on the walls available for sale (see photos). I recommend the tira misu for dessert. It was quite good. read more

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